At the end of the Trent Bridge Test, Darren Sammy sounded like other West Indies captains of old. In that moment of defeat, the ever-optimistic Sammy looked and sounded like Brian Lara or Jimmy Adams or Carl Hooper - all reduced in their time to saying not much of anything following beating after beating.

There was not much talk about winning the "big moments" or claims at satisfaction over the "fight" shown. As Mike Atherton probed for Sammy's plan to get his team to play better in the final Test, Sammy seemed at a loss for what to do next. "We really have to consider how we go about playing the cricket. We've been playing for a while now and we're not ready, so something has to be done," he said.

The potential and spirit of his unit was little consolation after two Tests, and the reality that defeat in the third would mean a whitewash against the game's top side - just what the cricket world expected - would not have comforted him either.

It may have taken Sammy a tad more effort to see the bigger picture after Trent Bridge, where his first Test century, Marlon Samuels' classy displays and the hard graft put in by Kemar Roach and Ravi Rampaul had been brought to nothing in one session on the third afternoon. In his post-game utterings Ottis Gibson found himself questioning the mental staying power of his young batting brigade. In more private moments, he may even have dared to ask himself how much longer it can go on this way.

Before the final chapter in this series is played out at Edgbaston, however, Chris Gayle's future with this team may be finalised. The West Indies selectors will be as keenly interested in the resolution of the "residual matters" between the estranged opening batsman and the West Indies Cricket Board as everyone else. They must be desperate to get in a man who will put runs on the board.

The West Indies' game against Leicestershire on the weekend could well have been a reminder that all the best West Indies players are not now wearing the team's colours, given Ramnaresh Sarwan is a committed player for Leicestershire. But the question is whether all the best West Indies players will make the best West Indies team; whether green but disciplined can in the long run trump flamboyant but mercurial.

Former Combined Islands and West Indies wicketkeeper of the 1970s Michael Findlay certainly hopes a place can be found for both types. "You can't get away from the exposure and experience of both Gayle and Sarwan. The current team is so inexperienced," he says. "I hope they are able to work things out."

Watching the action via television from his St Vincent home, Findlay notes with concern the shortcomings of the inexperienced. "The batsmen, bar Shivnarine Chanderpaul, don't seem to know where their off stump is. Darren Bravo is playing at too many balls he need not engage."

His uttered frustrations in 2012 must have feel like a dose of déjà vu. It was after all under selection panels of which Findlay was a part and eventually presided over as chairman that Gayle and Sarwan made their entries into international cricket in 2000. Findlay also had a hand in sending the precocious 19-year-old Samuels into the fire in Australia later that year, and saw Wavell Hinds, Ricardo Powell, Franklyn Rose, Mervyn Dillon, Nixon McLean and Reon King come on to the scene. He also saw them, by and large, fade away.

The names now are different but the predicament is similar: West Indies cricket has produced another generation of fatherless boys. Like their predecessors at the start of this millennium, the class of 2012 has precious few senior men to partner them through these tricky early years.

Findlay knows the difference a skilled senior pro can make. "I never forgot when I first went on tour with the West Indies team [1969]. An experienced player was given a younger player as his mentor," he says. "Wes Hall was a mentor to me. Jackie Hendriks was the No. 1 keeper, and Jackie would sit with me and pass on his experience."

So as both player and selector, he has seen enough to know how much more time West Indies cricket can lose because of a team not well blended. "Between No. 1 and No. 5 [in the batting order] is very brittle. If you have Sarwan and Gayle in between, they can guide the other players as Chanderpaul is doing, and that's what you need."

The current side will therefore seem to be crying out for the two men, who along with the injured/exiled Jerome Taylor, were mainly responsible for West Indies winning back the Wisden Trophy (for a month) in 2009 in the Caribbean.

But Sarwan's 626 runs at 104.33 in that series was not typical of him. Over his 87 Tests he has infuriated as much as he has delighted. An average of 40.01 barely does his considerable talent justice.

The combined presence of artists like Lara and Hooper in the middle order didn't help Sarwan turn into the finished product. Like the present crop, the Sarwans, Gayles and Samuelses had to learn their trade by trial and error. It has taken them a lot of time. Gayle apart, too much time. "I thought they would have matured earlier," reckons Findlay of Sarwan and Samuels.

Findlay's 1970s colleagues - Gordon Greenidge, Vivian Richards and Andy Roberts among them - had the solid finishing school of county cricket to aid them. For turn-of-the-century West Indian player, by contrast, regional competition just did not have senior pros of genuine quality to take up the slack. It is even less the case now.

"In many respects, Sarwan has not shown his maturity to guide the younger players," Findlay says. "They do not need to have Wes Hall's gift of gab to show true leadership. What West Indies cricket does need from all its players of greater experience - Samuels, Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo included - is leadership off the field, even more than on it."

Only the future will prove whether the 2012 versions of Gayle and Sarwan - given the chance - are better teachers now than those they might have had, or what they themselves might have been in the past. Some better cricket they can certainly make this team play. But make West Indies a stronger unit? History suggests that may be too high an expectation.

I am amused at how much emotions and ignorance is evident in comments about Sarwan. talk about mediocrity - check the stats of Bravo, Sammy and the rest.

POSTED BY
kriketluva
on | June 5, 2012, 21:23 GMT

Unless sarwan has matured remarkably and is fit he will again waste the time of the WI: promising much and delvering mediocrity. Let the man play county cricket where the pressures won't mess with his mind. He is still a school boy and has not grown in any way for 15 years. Are all of you cracked or something?

POSTED BY
delboy
on | June 5, 2012, 19:49 GMT

In a similar way that posters expect PROFESSIONAL cricketers to sacrifice a pay day; playing T20 in order to support their families; why are they not lobbying the board to perform their roles as volunteers(i.e. accept no perks or payments, buy their tickets to watch WI matches etc) so that they then have enough money to establish a fund to help buying out the full or partial contract of players when they need them to represent the WI in tests which coincide with T20 tournaments?

POSTED BY
SoLucien
on | June 5, 2012, 15:08 GMT

Krishnan Noel Alexander on (June 05 2012, 00:27 AM GMT) How many others did he help us win? I dont think anyone can argue that Sammy is completely useless, they would be disingenious if they did. He has qualities that benefit him as a leader but he wasnt from St. Lucia i doubt he would have been made captain let alone remain on the team.
As far as i am concerned Sammy is the captain and this should remain so until such time as he decides he is not up to the job anymore. Its a thankless job made worse by the fact that the team is inconsistent and have only won matches against bottom tier opposition in the last 17 or so years.

POSTED BY
b4u8me2
on | June 5, 2012, 5:40 GMT

People continue to look at statistics without also looking at the context of those stats. Yes WI was beaten and beaten badly in England 4 yrs ago but consider how demotivated those players must have been after a hard fought 1/0 victory over England only for the WICB to foolishly schedule a series in England that was not previously scheduled only a few weeks after finally regaining the trophy. How stupid was that? This bunch of players have not performed any better. Had Samuels failed on this tour WI would have been beaten in less that 3 days in both test matches thus far. Samuels alone has batted over 10hrs in the series. That is 5 full sessions. Almost two days of batting. He is the main reason WI has not been embarrassed.

POSTED BY
rienzied
on | June 5, 2012, 3:38 GMT

Sammy is a nice captain , a players captain, but he is NOT a good captain. in the past he ahs had chances to win matches and guess what he takes his foot of the pedal and doesn't have the killer instinct. Pretty much something Ponting lost towards the end, however I would not compare Ponting and him. Sammy is a nice guy on the field but he just lacks cricket acumen. You could barely keep him as a player but NOT as a captain

POSTED BY
rienzied
on | June 5, 2012, 1:41 GMT

Sarwan is not the finished product, Gayle doesnt inspire people? Man the top 4 batsmen make more runs when they have diahorrea off thepitch than on the pitch. Please bring back these 2 icons who are still in the PRINME of their career. We need inspiration and not the negativity the WICB and the coach are full of!

POSTED BY
on | June 5, 2012, 1:15 GMT

Seems like Finlays knows more than the entire WICB, Coach and selectors....lol

POSTED BY
gloriouscricket
on | June 5, 2012, 0:31 GMT

The return of Gayle at this time can be a boon to WINDIES cricket; Simply put--He is ready to make a positive impact on the field & I do believe in the dressingroom.Sarwan is still not ready to return to WINDIES cricket. He is committed to honouring his contractural obligations with Leicestershire-- I do believe there are some underlying problems between him & the WICB that needs to be address. Dwayne Bravo seems to be a positive individual, the team can benifit from his presence also.I,m just as frustrated as anyone when WI lose, Im also realistic to know that they are playing the Elite teams in test cricket.They MUST NOT ALLOWED ENGLAND TO WHITE WASH them or Any one for that matter,--Win ONE--give us an inkling or a fraction of hope to see that you,ve turn the coroner.At this time they still do not have the "father figure", but I,M nominating Sammy & Samuels as the "BIG Brothers", Chanderpaul is of course the Guide. He has earned his respect, give it to him.

POSTED BY
on | June 5, 2012, 0:27 GMT

@ RohanChambers40 . Last test match west indies won ...last year against Pakistan in Guyana ...man of the match? Darren Sammy , for his5-For . So Now u know , Sammy can win West Indies's matches

POSTED BY
on | June 6, 2012, 2:23 GMT

I am amused at how much emotions and ignorance is evident in comments about Sarwan. talk about mediocrity - check the stats of Bravo, Sammy and the rest.

POSTED BY
kriketluva
on | June 5, 2012, 21:23 GMT

Unless sarwan has matured remarkably and is fit he will again waste the time of the WI: promising much and delvering mediocrity. Let the man play county cricket where the pressures won't mess with his mind. He is still a school boy and has not grown in any way for 15 years. Are all of you cracked or something?

POSTED BY
delboy
on | June 5, 2012, 19:49 GMT

In a similar way that posters expect PROFESSIONAL cricketers to sacrifice a pay day; playing T20 in order to support their families; why are they not lobbying the board to perform their roles as volunteers(i.e. accept no perks or payments, buy their tickets to watch WI matches etc) so that they then have enough money to establish a fund to help buying out the full or partial contract of players when they need them to represent the WI in tests which coincide with T20 tournaments?

POSTED BY
SoLucien
on | June 5, 2012, 15:08 GMT

Krishnan Noel Alexander on (June 05 2012, 00:27 AM GMT) How many others did he help us win? I dont think anyone can argue that Sammy is completely useless, they would be disingenious if they did. He has qualities that benefit him as a leader but he wasnt from St. Lucia i doubt he would have been made captain let alone remain on the team.
As far as i am concerned Sammy is the captain and this should remain so until such time as he decides he is not up to the job anymore. Its a thankless job made worse by the fact that the team is inconsistent and have only won matches against bottom tier opposition in the last 17 or so years.

POSTED BY
b4u8me2
on | June 5, 2012, 5:40 GMT

People continue to look at statistics without also looking at the context of those stats. Yes WI was beaten and beaten badly in England 4 yrs ago but consider how demotivated those players must have been after a hard fought 1/0 victory over England only for the WICB to foolishly schedule a series in England that was not previously scheduled only a few weeks after finally regaining the trophy. How stupid was that? This bunch of players have not performed any better. Had Samuels failed on this tour WI would have been beaten in less that 3 days in both test matches thus far. Samuels alone has batted over 10hrs in the series. That is 5 full sessions. Almost two days of batting. He is the main reason WI has not been embarrassed.

POSTED BY
rienzied
on | June 5, 2012, 3:38 GMT

Sammy is a nice captain , a players captain, but he is NOT a good captain. in the past he ahs had chances to win matches and guess what he takes his foot of the pedal and doesn't have the killer instinct. Pretty much something Ponting lost towards the end, however I would not compare Ponting and him. Sammy is a nice guy on the field but he just lacks cricket acumen. You could barely keep him as a player but NOT as a captain

POSTED BY
rienzied
on | June 5, 2012, 1:41 GMT

Sarwan is not the finished product, Gayle doesnt inspire people? Man the top 4 batsmen make more runs when they have diahorrea off thepitch than on the pitch. Please bring back these 2 icons who are still in the PRINME of their career. We need inspiration and not the negativity the WICB and the coach are full of!

POSTED BY
on | June 5, 2012, 1:15 GMT

Seems like Finlays knows more than the entire WICB, Coach and selectors....lol

POSTED BY
gloriouscricket
on | June 5, 2012, 0:31 GMT

The return of Gayle at this time can be a boon to WINDIES cricket; Simply put--He is ready to make a positive impact on the field & I do believe in the dressingroom.Sarwan is still not ready to return to WINDIES cricket. He is committed to honouring his contractural obligations with Leicestershire-- I do believe there are some underlying problems between him & the WICB that needs to be address. Dwayne Bravo seems to be a positive individual, the team can benifit from his presence also.I,m just as frustrated as anyone when WI lose, Im also realistic to know that they are playing the Elite teams in test cricket.They MUST NOT ALLOWED ENGLAND TO WHITE WASH them or Any one for that matter,--Win ONE--give us an inkling or a fraction of hope to see that you,ve turn the coroner.At this time they still do not have the "father figure", but I,M nominating Sammy & Samuels as the "BIG Brothers", Chanderpaul is of course the Guide. He has earned his respect, give it to him.

POSTED BY
on | June 5, 2012, 0:27 GMT

@ RohanChambers40 . Last test match west indies won ...last year against Pakistan in Guyana ...man of the match? Darren Sammy , for his5-For . So Now u know , Sammy can win West Indies's matches

POSTED BY
RohanChambers40
on | June 4, 2012, 22:46 GMT

Last point: Sammy = Good captain, Sammy = useful batsman. Sammy = ordinary bowler, who upsets the balance of the current team. Let's call a spade a spade. Sammy should play as Captain, and also as a 5th bowler/ allrounder, but not as one of your top four bowlers. This is because he is not a match winner/he is not a strike bowler. He will obviously get wickets because he has to bowl, but he his not going to win you a game. Question: If England were batting in the 4th innings of the third test, with 8 wickets down, and one over to bat out the day's play to save the test match, would Sammy be in your top 3 bowlers to have a bowl?

POSTED BY
RohanChambers40
on | June 4, 2012, 22:40 GMT

One of the major reasons why Samuels took so long to mature was because he was never made to work hard to initially get into the West Indies team. He was one of, if not the most talented and successful player of his Jamaica youth cricket time 1999 in Barbados, but was picked primarily on this prospect of talent and not on run production at the first class senior regional level, like what Lara ( and to a lesser extent Chanderpaul) had to do. Samuels' only first class season of any real merit was in 2011. Next point: While Gayle, Chanderpaul and Sarwan may not guarantee victory, they make the WI team better in quality. Don't tell me about when they were playing we were losing so no need for them now ..nonsense..they have grown since, and now more mature..When you add their Star quality to the obvious improvement in the current team's fighting spirit, we will have our best chance of doing well.

POSTED BY
Triniboss501
on | June 4, 2012, 22:07 GMT

I am so sick and tired of paying to see a team consistently lose. Be it lose a tight game or lose by a great margin, it is still losing. It reach to the point that the goals of the team is to make 4 days of test. That sounds so pitiful and shameful. People saying oh it is a better team because they are showing spirit, NON SENSE!! No serious entity would put up with this. Then the Board with all their upmost wisdom comes out and state it is not about picking the best players. Come on give me a break. If wasn't for the senior players, the team would be a laughing stock. WI should stop playing international cricket and seriosuly tackle the issues and sort things out. Don't know how, but as a business and brand it is a joke and embarassment.

POSTED BY
pealivi
on | June 4, 2012, 21:59 GMT

What WI cricket needs is man management skills. Management must do all it can to bring the best and most gifted players together to play as a unit. Personalities are different and nature's hand is such that, the most gifted players tend to be aberrant or even radicals. Every country has its own "naughty boys", but these guys are well managed and deliver the goods when needed. So the best players get to play and deliver the goods. So far, the rookies in WI team, though talented, are not performing, that's the truth! Cricket is not about competing with the best, its about beating the best and doing your country and your colour proud. The mantra of: "we are improving and we are fighting" is no longer good enough. WI should start winning again!!

POSTED BY
SoLucien
on | June 4, 2012, 21:56 GMT

Jamaica has the best netball team in the caribbean and is rated in the top 5 in the world and they struggle to find funding for their tours overseas. How long do you think cricket is going to command enough respect to ensure tours are funded, regional games are sponsored etc.
The game is dying in the region and if the small island tit for tat behaviour continues its very unlikely that we will have a sustainable product to offer as entertainment to the people of the region and the world let alone climb from the abyss we find ourselves in. No individual player is the answer, neither Sammy nor Gayle nor Sarwan. It has to be a coordinated effort by the team, regional admnistrators and people of the caribbean.
We can debate who did what, when and where and for how long but that only satisfies our individual need to criticise and goes no where in restoring the game to its rightful place as the regions' premier sport

POSTED BY
gudolerhum
on | June 4, 2012, 21:10 GMT

If anyone is waiting for or expecting Gayle to 'mentor' or guide the young players, just wasting your time. How to stand looking bored at slip maybe.

POSTED BY
suniljoseph
on | June 4, 2012, 20:49 GMT

I think Sammy is doing much better than the previous captains who have already been named earlier. Although he is not winning matches but he is bringing pride and fight among the unit. The West Indies cricket has been worse for the last 20 years and how come can you say that he will improve it in a couple of years. Everything regarding building a winning unit has been ruined in the past and Sammy needs at least five years to rectify it again. God bless you Sammy.

POSTED BY
on | June 4, 2012, 20:03 GMT

The simple solution is to combine the best batsmen with the best bowlers to get the best team. Add a competent wicketkeeper in the mix and that's your starting 11. Those who keep harping on what occurred in the past, fail to grasp that the batsmen were better then but the bowlers were not better than what we have now.

POSTED BY
S.Jagernath
on | June 4, 2012, 19:44 GMT

If I remember correctly,Ramnaresh Sarwan was always criticised for his inability against short pitched bowling & his poor away average.Why has everyone forgotten that he was technically flawed,Chris Gayle was just the same.Gayle's technique against swing bowling has always been suspect.The West Indies should rather invest in their talented youth.Their young guys are doing a good job against the young Indians.

POSTED BY
legend_963
on | June 4, 2012, 19:29 GMT

@jupiterlaw WI aren't doing any better now i don't know where people are getting this idea that WI are improving and i will keep saying this as long as otis gibson remains coach we will go nowhere for your information with those players we won a TEST SERIES against ENGLAND.

POSTED BY
SoLucien
on | June 4, 2012, 17:30 GMT

@jupiterlaw What is your solution then? Should we continue losing admirably as a way to stick it to those said players. I think everybody knows that wins wont come with their inclusion. But we still need to use what we have until we organise ourselves better. This impasse between the WICB and said players has divided and devalued cricket and the region enough. I think we all want the same thing for our game.
I think the WICB can make money of these freelancce cricketers. They have benefited from training and coaching from within the reqion, why not charge a percentage of their contract fee if they dont want to sign contracts with the WICB? Use that money to invest in who we deem more committed, improve the regional game and facilities.

POSTED BY
on | June 4, 2012, 16:46 GMT

some time i read some of these people comment i wonder if they really have wi cricket best interest r theirs own its does not take nothing to see that the different between the chris gayle team and the present team is the bowling department is much better they can bowl out a team even if the wicket has some thing to help the bowlers they couldn't capitalize on it it was gayle side who beat england in england and go to south africa and beat them for the first time before he get hurt wi dont have the players to that u can get rid of good senior players wicb took the wrong approch right now these youngster are loosing their confident day by day what ever the coach plan its surly back fire and too much ego now to admit it

POSTED BY
mrhamilton
on | June 4, 2012, 16:37 GMT

as many say if u look at some of the windies teams of 2006-2009 many of them had all these "stars" people are clamouring for now and those teams were abysmal worse than now. At a bare minimum i might only accept Gayle back in. Sarwan failed in the windies last year too. Just gayle up at the top would add 40 runds an innings and Narine would surely take a few wickets quicker than bishoo or the usual 4th bowler. and that is teh margin they have been losing by. Sammy is the key man of the future, I see darren bringing his batting average up to 26-27 very soon and he should flourish in new zealand as a bowler

POSTED BY
mrhamilton
on | June 4, 2012, 16:29 GMT

people seem to forget many of these names they are calling to "lift this weak west indies team" in gayle, sarwan,dwayne bravo,taylor,Deonarine,samuels etc etc these guys all played together for years and their lack of discipline, selfishness, inconsistency lack of fight & pride, allied with the woeful incompetence of the WICB and lack of planning and financial unfairness to the players led to this situation. right now gibson and sammy have restored fight and pride, and the IPL has addressed the windies superstars financial concerns....so right now the WICB need to add the final missing link which is man management. The team needs to be built around Sammy/Chanderpaul/Darren Bravo/Roach/Samuels & Gayle and Sarwan must be bought back in to help nurture the new breed of narine,pollard, etc with edwards being given a chance 2 mature, Nash is too old. If all this can be done and hey who knows a new pair of fast bowlers emerges I can see the windies rising again winning series's

POSTED BY
tappee74
on | June 4, 2012, 15:37 GMT

The WI bosses will do well in a circus,of course not the acts that require skills.At the end of each game,there is a repeated mantra of doing better,but the results are never different.WI at present has the resource to trash any team in the world.The team should read,Gyale,Bharrat,Bravo,Sarwan,Shiv,Samuels,Deonarine,D.Bravo,Ramdin,Rampaul,F,Edwards.Sammy.From this 12 pick your final 11.

The above suggested line up is all about the potential match winners when teamed up together can be a threat to any team in d world and can easily get adapted to any wicket .. The need of the hour is to develop a sort of team spirit and confidence among the players .. forget Gibson and ask him to take a permanent vacation. WI badly need a wicket keeper-batsman which they lack since the exit of ridley jacobs..

POSTED BY
on | June 4, 2012, 13:18 GMT

if only legends like viv richards..andy roberts...michael holding...joal garner etc can form an alliance an take it to d wicb in d name of saving WI cricket...it wud be very much wht i think is needed....they shud be d new selection panel....currently the selection panel consis of 3 ppl whom not much ppl even know....it is time the WICB get a slap in the face an wake up an realise they need to act now or else d worst will be upon us...

Most of the responders here seem to think that the addition of Gayle, Sarwan Bravo and Taylor is what is needed for WI to start winning again. What they seem to be forgetting is that these players had been in the WI team together and the team did worst with them than the team are doing now.

POSTED BY
on | June 4, 2012, 11:26 GMT

Sarwan and Gayle played here 4 years ago. They are showing MUCH MORE fight this time than they did then. WI with Gayle and Sarwan (and a couple of the other "stars") were destroyed a few years back. It's was embarrasing. Sammy has lead a revival of sorts. WI are at least staying in the game for days on end. Are you sure you WANT these "celebrity cricketers" back?

POSTED BY
stormy16
on | June 4, 2012, 10:14 GMT

I dont understand how so many first choice players are not playing for the WI over what looks like an admiistration bungle. The WICB is paid to ensure these guys get on the park and here we have a minimum of 5 first choice players not in the team. There is little point in debating over contracts and what Galye said on a radio show - the fact is WICB cannot get these guys on the park. If a player failed that badly he would be dropped and its time for the WICB to ensure we see the best players on the park. I understand in these times of lucrative IPL contracts a relatively poor board like WICB will have struggles but then a compromise must be reached - that's what the WICB is paid to do. For example why is only Narine in Eng?

POSTED BY
TimelessTests
on | June 4, 2012, 7:40 GMT

Of course the addition of Gayle and Sarwan would bolster the WI batting short term. Are they the role models for the younger generation? Not sure.
But the biggest match for the Windies this summer as far as their longer term cricketing ambitions go is their 4th Test in Stratford in August. If Ussain Bolt breaks his world record in the 100m to full media hype again even more Carribean youngsters will forsake cricket for athletics. Those that haven't already seen the mega-bucks potential of basketball, that is.

POSTED BY
Rahul_78
on | June 4, 2012, 5:36 GMT

Dwayne bravo, Sarwan , Taylor and Gayle could all be selected in the test XI and should up the performance of the struggling team. But the million dollar question is if all or most of them would request for a NOC to play in IPL, Big bash or any other similar tournament for their respective clubs at the same time WI is scheduled to play a test match then what the coach, captain and WI board should do? Go back to inexperience players to fill the void created by the free lancers who have decided not to renew their contracts which provides them the freedom to pick and choose their playing schedule. How is this going to help WI cricket to grow? How are these guys going to mentor the young ones. And tommorow if WI finds another Gayle or Viv Richards what is the youngster going to learn under these seniors? Would he prepare to sacrifice a big fat pay cheque to play for his country?

POSTED BY
diehard_alwayz
on | June 4, 2012, 5:33 GMT

Just what will WICB need to do to get these 11 on the field for tests:

Mr.Gibson, WICB, give the ego a rest, put a team on the park that can play like the WI the world knew.

Harsha, Phoenix, AZ

POSTED BY
Sadiqahmed
on | June 4, 2012, 4:34 GMT

The addition of the combined forces of Gayle, Sarwan, Pollard, Dwayne Bravo and Narine can lift this weak West Indies team considerably and challenge England. Without this major surgery, WI has very little hope of putting in good performance.

Sadiq

POSTED BY
on | June 4, 2012, 4:21 GMT

It is true that i may have taken Gayle, Sarwan, Samuels long to mature on the international stage - but that is not relevant now.

Currently they are matured and their presence would make the West indies better (along with Nash who was also foolishly not given a contract last year). All of these articles that have been popping up, trying to question the obvious improvement these guys would make to the windies feeble batting line-up is getting nauseating now.

No featured comments at the moment.

POSTED BY
on | June 4, 2012, 4:21 GMT

It is true that i may have taken Gayle, Sarwan, Samuels long to mature on the international stage - but that is not relevant now.

Currently they are matured and their presence would make the West indies better (along with Nash who was also foolishly not given a contract last year). All of these articles that have been popping up, trying to question the obvious improvement these guys would make to the windies feeble batting line-up is getting nauseating now.

POSTED BY
Sadiqahmed
on | June 4, 2012, 4:34 GMT

The addition of the combined forces of Gayle, Sarwan, Pollard, Dwayne Bravo and Narine can lift this weak West Indies team considerably and challenge England. Without this major surgery, WI has very little hope of putting in good performance.

Sadiq

POSTED BY
diehard_alwayz
on | June 4, 2012, 5:33 GMT

Just what will WICB need to do to get these 11 on the field for tests:

Mr.Gibson, WICB, give the ego a rest, put a team on the park that can play like the WI the world knew.

Harsha, Phoenix, AZ

POSTED BY
Rahul_78
on | June 4, 2012, 5:36 GMT

Dwayne bravo, Sarwan , Taylor and Gayle could all be selected in the test XI and should up the performance of the struggling team. But the million dollar question is if all or most of them would request for a NOC to play in IPL, Big bash or any other similar tournament for their respective clubs at the same time WI is scheduled to play a test match then what the coach, captain and WI board should do? Go back to inexperience players to fill the void created by the free lancers who have decided not to renew their contracts which provides them the freedom to pick and choose their playing schedule. How is this going to help WI cricket to grow? How are these guys going to mentor the young ones. And tommorow if WI finds another Gayle or Viv Richards what is the youngster going to learn under these seniors? Would he prepare to sacrifice a big fat pay cheque to play for his country?

POSTED BY
TimelessTests
on | June 4, 2012, 7:40 GMT

Of course the addition of Gayle and Sarwan would bolster the WI batting short term. Are they the role models for the younger generation? Not sure.
But the biggest match for the Windies this summer as far as their longer term cricketing ambitions go is their 4th Test in Stratford in August. If Ussain Bolt breaks his world record in the 100m to full media hype again even more Carribean youngsters will forsake cricket for athletics. Those that haven't already seen the mega-bucks potential of basketball, that is.

POSTED BY
stormy16
on | June 4, 2012, 10:14 GMT

I dont understand how so many first choice players are not playing for the WI over what looks like an admiistration bungle. The WICB is paid to ensure these guys get on the park and here we have a minimum of 5 first choice players not in the team. There is little point in debating over contracts and what Galye said on a radio show - the fact is WICB cannot get these guys on the park. If a player failed that badly he would be dropped and its time for the WICB to ensure we see the best players on the park. I understand in these times of lucrative IPL contracts a relatively poor board like WICB will have struggles but then a compromise must be reached - that's what the WICB is paid to do. For example why is only Narine in Eng?

POSTED BY
on | June 4, 2012, 11:26 GMT

Sarwan and Gayle played here 4 years ago. They are showing MUCH MORE fight this time than they did then. WI with Gayle and Sarwan (and a couple of the other "stars") were destroyed a few years back. It's was embarrasing. Sammy has lead a revival of sorts. WI are at least staying in the game for days on end. Are you sure you WANT these "celebrity cricketers" back?

POSTED BY
jupiterlaw
on | June 4, 2012, 12:44 GMT

Most of the responders here seem to think that the addition of Gayle, Sarwan Bravo and Taylor is what is needed for WI to start winning again. What they seem to be forgetting is that these players had been in the WI team together and the team did worst with them than the team are doing now.

if only legends like viv richards..andy roberts...michael holding...joal garner etc can form an alliance an take it to d wicb in d name of saving WI cricket...it wud be very much wht i think is needed....they shud be d new selection panel....currently the selection panel consis of 3 ppl whom not much ppl even know....it is time the WICB get a slap in the face an wake up an realise they need to act now or else d worst will be upon us...